Chapter Seven

Moose

I came I saw I made it possible
I've done it all its not just physical
Here they come here they come take away my friends
I will not follow them
Here they come here they come take away my friends
With all their promises

Maybe leaving wasn't the best idea, Moose decided.

"Well...what do we have here?" Moose gulped as he tried to turn and go back up the stairs to the apartment, but two guy stood in front of him.

"Jared wants the kid alive." Was the last thing he heard before something hard hit him in the back of the head and everything went black.

When he woke up, he was sitting in a cage. It took him a few moments to realize he was sitting in the cage that sat in the middle of the ballroom. Looking around, Moose could barely make out a few figures in the darkness. Before he could open his mouth to speak, a fist reached out and connected with his jaw. Gasping, Moose fell over and groaned, clutching his jaw.

"There's more where that came from but...I'd rather not damage my prize too much." Jared's voice sneered as hands grabbed Moose roughly and pulled him up.

"Prize?" Moose tried to muster up some venom but it came out more like a squeak. His words sent shooting pain through his jaw.

"That's right. I still can't believe you just walked right into my hands. My men were supposed to be waiting on Gabriel so imagine my surprise when they nabbed you. Now I feel like I should call off this whole execution business...but I'm curious. Will Gabriel still die for you?"

"No, he won't." Moose spat but he didn't believe his own words. The hopelessness he had seen in Gabriel's eyes told him otherwise.

"Don't be so sure. I know Gabe, and trust me, he'll die. If not for you, then certainly for himself. You see, for the last two years, I've watched that light fade away from his eyes. I know about his sleepless nights, the way he looks out his living room window as if he wants to jump, I know he's dying on the inside. And that works to my advantage." Jared chuckled and Moose lost it. With every bit of strength he had, he reached out and pushed Jared against the bars of the cage.

"You...he calls himself a monster but you...you're the monster." Moose hissed. Jared's eyes widened at the sudden display of force before they flickered to the other figures. Moose fought against the hands that were pulling him away. He didn't want to kill Jared, he didn't even want to hurt Jared, but he wanted him to feel the same pain Gabriel did. It was pain that no one could comprehend.

"Tie him up," Jared ordered, "And leave him. We'll let him sit and think about what he's done."

Moose felt any tendril of hope he had leave him as he was pushed back into the chair and a thick rope was tied around him. Once they knew he couldn't try and escape, they left him to sit, locked in a cage like an animal.

Moose thought back to the conversation he'd had with Gabriel just a few hours later. He wished he could take back the words he had said. His friendship with Gabriel, despite the strangeness of it, was important to him. Shaking his head, Moose wished he had stayed. Would it have made any difference in Gabriel's resolve to die? Moose could only hope that it would, because he'd probably never get a chance to find out.

"I should have listened to Gabriel..." He whispered.

"I find doing that completely pointless." Moose looked up as the lock on the cage jangled and fell off.

"Eleanor? What the hell are you doing here? I thought Gabe sent you home!" He whispered and Eleanor shook her head.

"If he actually thought I'd leave, he's dumber than I thought. I've been keeping an eye on things and when I saw Jared nab you, I followed you guys here." She explained as she untied the rope and let Moose free.

"Thanks, but I think Gabriel needs more help than I do right now. He wants to go through with the execution, there has to be some way to change his mind." Moose told her.

"Don't worry, Jared may think he knows Gabriel but Gabe's my brother. He has something up his sleeve. For the sake of safety, though, I need you to continue believing that Gabriel is going to die for you." She told him.

"What? Why?"

"Because he'll continue to think that he has the upper hand." Moose turned to see Gabriel. A grin broke out on his face as he stood up and faced him, "Jared thinks that once I die, he can just take over, but he forgets that I have more friends in this city than he realizes."

"Jared wants war and that's what he's going to get." Eleanor nodded.

"Wait, war? I know I said we should fight back but there has to be some other way. If you keep fighting fire with fire, everything is just going to burn up and be destroyed. No, we need to find a different way to beat Jared." Moose argued.

"Moose..." Gabriel opened his mouth but closed it when Moose shook his head.

"I know fighting with guns and terror are what you're used to, but violence just leads to more violence. And how do you know that Jared's the only one who wants to oppose you? If you want order in the Grand Ball again, fight fire with peace. You get what I'm saying?" Moose finished.

"I don't think Gabriel is good at 'peace'" Eleanor snickered.

"No, I'm not, but I know someone who is. Dying isn't the only thing that frees me from my kingship. A willing successor works just as well, and doesn't require death." Gabriel looked thoughtful before turning to Eleanor, "Tie him back up. We don't want Jared to know we were here."

"Wait," Moose said as he sat in the chair and let Eleanor tell him back up, "What do you mean a 'willing successor?' Who are you talking about?"

"Someone who's much better than me. He's a good friend, despite everything I've put him through, and I think he know what it takes to be a king more than I do." Gabriel said as he looked off in the distance with a wistful gaze before turning back to Moose, a glimmer of hope showing in his eyes.

"In that case, I think everything is going to be okay." Moose watched as they locked the cage and disappeared. He wished he had been able to go with but he knew that would mess everything up.

No, he had a lot of thinking to do. He wondered what Camille would say when he told her what had happened to him. She'd probably freak out, he laughed, but then she'd kiss him and tell him that she's glad he's alright. Then he'd tell her the most shocking part of all, and she'd probably hit him and ask him what the hell he was thinking. He could handle it though, and Gabriel trusted him. As long as he wasn't in it alone, he'd be fine.

He'd be just fine.

So...I know a bunch of you are probably really confused but everything gets revealed in time. We're almost at the halfway point, and things are about to get really good. So stick around, and remember, speculations are welcome. Thanks for all the reviews! They mean a lot!

~As the Rush Comes~

Disclaimer: I do not own Step Up or Here They Come by Royal Bliss